Five Writers' Writing

Woman for President?

by Penny M

What a question! I caught a bit of Morning Talk on radio SAFM the other day, a very interesting program. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a podcast for that particular morning. Apparently, the question being aired, purporting to have come from the President, was, ‘Is South Africa ready for a woman president?’

I managed to swallow a cheesecake of indignation in time to catch the views of one enlightened listener who commented that it isn’t about what colour, gender, race a person is, but about who is the best person for the job! Duh!!! Amen sister.

If we start promoting on a racist bias, we may as well restrict the criteria to candidates who wear red overalls, ballet shoes, use L’Oreal Style & Shine on their pubic hair, drive the latest Bentley and eat curried kidneys on toast for breakfast.

The following snippets are taken from an article written by Rebecca Davis for The Daily Maverick:

‘On Friday, on the eve of Women’s Day, President Jacob Zuma said that he believed South Africa was ready for a female president. Cynics might say that perhaps he didn’t have much choice, since he was standing next to a female president: Chile’s Michelle Bachelet…

As the Daily Maverick’s Ranjeni Munusamy pointed out last week, Zuma said something similar ahead of the May elections: that “if there was a suitable female candidate in the ANC for presidency, the ANC will enthusiastically vote for her”.

In 2014, such a sentiment should barely warrant a headline, were it not for the fact that the body within the ANC specifically tasked with keeping an eye on the position of women – the ANC Women’s League – has twice said in recent years that South Africa is not ready for a female president…

If we are truly living in a democracy, then why should there be a need to ask the question? Could it be that somebody is currying favour for a ‘right royal cock-up’?

Just as well I don’t qualify to vote…

I wonder if William Ross Wallace would have approved of the current state of affairs. Perhaps somebody should draw the president’s attention to his poem,

The Hand That Rocks The Cradle Is The Hand That Rules The World

Woman, how divine your mission
Here upon our natal sod!
Keep, oh, keep the young heart open
Always to the breath of God!
All true trophies of the ages
Are from mother-love impearled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world.

Blessings on the hand of women!
Fathers, sons, and daughters cry,
And the sacred song is mingled
With the worship in the sky–
Mingles where no tempest darkens,
Rainbows evermore are hurled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world.

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2 thoughts on “Woman for President?”

Wishful thinking, Penny, but I am a wishful thinker too. If we had a female president, there would probably be less corruption because the taxes we pay would more likely be channeled into the right places. The homeless, poor, uneducated, ill and unemployed need shelter, food, decent education, hospital care and a better chance at life in general. These are needs that a woman president would surely recognise and try to provide. Our ruling party is very good at marketing itself but they seem never to have heard of that most basic Marketing 101 concept: Mazlow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Keep wishing, keep praying…

Hmmm – Hillary for the USA and a long lines of wannabees here – guess who’s right in front! If there’s a woman out there, other than Dr Merkel, who embraces transparency in its broadest form, a non-corrupt government, stable economy and levelled playing fields generally, no Orwellian aspirations…please hold up your hand! the list is endless. But then I’m the original cynic. Perhaps the hand of woman will, one day, reach across the world, and be felt where today it is shackled. There’s always hope. thanks Penny